Everything Starts with an 'E'

E-Zee-Possee was a group compiled by Jeremy Healy of Haysi Fantayzee fame. It uses a different vocalist for each record owing to his experiences producing the Business Mix of Boy George's "Live My Life" with extra vocals with street rapper MC Cyndee.{{cite web|url=http://www.deadoralive.net/haysifantayzee/jeremy.html|title=Haysi Recollections|publisher=DeadorAlive.net|accessdate=9 May 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928054610/http://www.deadoralive.net/haysifantayzee/jeremy.html|archivedate=28 September 2013|df=dmy-all}}

"Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} was initially produced as an instrumental dance record with assorted samples by Jimi Hendrix, Lost in Space and from classical music. It was written by Healy immediately after his first trip to Ibiza, where the acid house movement was in full swing, as Healy's and Rogers' interpretation of house music at the time having taken heavy inspiration from the music being played there. The title, "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}}, originated from a Ronald McDonald LP which contained the line and was subsequently sampled in the song. Healy then presented it to Boy George, who suggested they use MC Kinky,{{cite magazine|url=http://www.residentadvisor.net/dj/jeremyhealy/biography|title=Jeremy Healy|magazine=Resident Advisor|accessdate=11 August 2015}} a white female raggamuffin toaster who had previously featured on his song Kipsy. She then used the song to write what according to her was an anti-drug rant. Boy George and Eve Gallagher both provide backing vocals for the record.

It was rejected by every label George went to and eventually he opted to front the money himself, pressing a thousand copies with the intent to get it played in the clubs. Its first play was in the Hacienda in Manchester,{{cite journal|title=Out, Volume 4, Issues 1–5|publisher=Out Pub., Incorporated|year=1995|page=67}} and after becoming a theme for many of the raves, Virgin Records surrendered and signed the band. Although BBC Radio 1 initially banned the song due to controversial lyrical content,{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw-tRL9PUNg?t=1h25m48s|title=Pump Up the Volume|time=85:48|publisher=YouTube|accessdate=23 March 2013}} it was performed on the Sky1 show Hits International,{{cite web|url=http://www.losninos.be/artist/feral|title=Feral aka Mc Kinky|publisher=Losninos.be|accessdate=11 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117024546/http://www.losninos.be/artist/feral|archive-date=17 November 2015|url-status=dead}} and would later chart at #15 on the UK Singles Chart,{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/_/e-zee%20possee/|title=E-Zee Possee|publisher=The Official Charts Company|accessdate=2 June 2013}} remaining the flagship for George's More Protein label as well as an anthem for the entire acid house movement of the late 1980s.{{cite web|url=http://www.lengpleng.com/2013/02/blog-post_14.html|title=LengPleng biography for MC Kinky|publisher=Lengpleng.com|accessdate=23 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109110427/http://www.lengpleng.com/2013/02/blog-post_14.html|archive-date=9 November 2013|url-status=dead}} It later appeared on E-Zee Possee's album The Bone Dance alongside follow-up singles "Love On Love", "The Sun Machine" and "Breathing Is E-Zee"{{cite AV media notes|title=The Bone Dance|others=E-Zee Possee|year=1992|publisher=More Protein}} as well as on Now That's What I Call Music! 17.{{cite web|url=http://antipathti.com/2015/01/14/now-thats-what-i-call-music-17/|title=Now That's What I Call Music 17|publisher=Antipathti.com|accessdate=11 August 2015}} After the earlier ban, the song was played on BBC stations at various times in 2010 and later.E.g.: [http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00rm3vg Dave Pearce, BBC Radio 6, 21 March 2010], [http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012h6r2 "Dave Pearce Meets Boy George", BBC Radio 6, 16 July 2011], [http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01hj9zg Dave Pearce, BBC Radio 2, 12 May 2012], {{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b02x8z04|title=Dave Pearce: Dance Years, 15 June 2013|publisher=BBC|accessdate=11 August 2015}}

In 1990, Dave Jennings from Melody Maker commented, "The nannies, cowards and puritans at the BBC want to deprive you from this delight; it's been banned from Top of the Pops and given minimal Radio 1 exposure. Thankfully, the censors seem to have been overcome — because this devastating dance trance is already beating up the Top 20. [...] MC Kinky spins her twisting take, there are soulful choruses of "ecstacy!" and resistance is useless. Big, baggy and brilliant."{{cite magazine|first=Dave|last=Jennings|magazine=Melody Maker|title=Singles|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/nothingelseon/52075742861/|date=31 March 1990|access-date=24 February 2023}} Same year, David Giles from Music Week wrote, "Third release of a track that's been popular in clubs but has, as yet, failed to ignite the public's imagination. Not on patch on their recent "Love On Love" single; it obeys the golden rules of house too closely, right down to the chants of "ecstacy" (drug references will of course be fervently denied). Already in the 40, though, so expect a big hit this time round."{{cite magazine|first= David |last= Giles |title= Singles |magazine= Music Week |date= 24 March 1990 |page= 21 |accessdate= 29 October 2020 |url= https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1990/MW-1990-03-24.pdf}} On the 1996 release, the magazine gave it three out of five.{{cite magazine|first= |last= |title= Reviews: Singles |magazine= Music Week |date= 3 February 1996 |page= 27 |accessdate= 11 July 2021 |url= https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-02-03.pdf}} In March 1989, William Shaw from Smash Hits called it a "silly record", and "a piece of what used to be called "Acid House", with a rampant drum machine rhythm, a completely unhinged bit of reggae rapping, the wholesale theft of the odd piece of Michael Jackson, and a frantic bit of guitar squalling nicked off a record by an old deceased bloke called Jimi Hendrix."{{cite magazine|first=William|last=Shaw|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/57779449@N02/27514744174/in/album-72157670701267085/|title=Singles|magazine=Smash Hits|date=8 March 1989|page=45|access-date=8 March 2023}} Looking back in 2001, Simon Cantlon of AllMusic gave the song a negative review, noting that the song "had not aged well" although conceded that the track "is considered a classic by some".{{cite web|author=Simon Cantlon |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/lucky-for-some-mw0000017172 |title=Lucky for Some – Boy George | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards |publisher=AllMusic |date=13 November 2001 |accessdate=12 May 2014}}

"Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} was originally released on 31 July 1989, and peaked at number 69 on the UK Singles Chart, leaving the top 75 chart after only one week.{{cite book| first= David| last= Roberts| year= 2006| title= British Hit Singles & Albums| edition= 19th| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London| isbn= 1-904994-10-5| page= 175}} However, the single was re-released less than a year later, on 5 March 1990, and climbed to number 15 on the UK chart. It remained in the chart for eight weeks, making it the longest chart running for the band.

A music video was made for the song after the song cracked the top 20. Despite this, the band were not allowed on Top of the Pops to promote it, and the song was not broadcast at the time on music video channels. It features MC Kinky rapping to the song as well as Marc Massive and George Long dancing alongside her.

When the song achieved mainstream success, MC Kinky didn't have a manager or an agent, and as such received many calls to her landline requesting that she perform somewhere. These performances often took place in obscure locations off the M25 motorway around London, at acid house raves with "hundreds of thousands" of attendees.{{cite web|url = http://www.phnompenhpost.com/7days/feral-sound-kinky-style|title = Feral sound, kinky style|work = The Phnom Penh Post|accessdate = 23 March 2013}} She recalled that she often had to curl her hair in the car and put on reflective clothing inside pub toilets, and that "when the screechy guitar on 'Everything ... ' began, the crowd would roar like a football stadium." Once she had performed, she used to start dancing inside the crowd, during which she would find herself bombarded with people claiming that she had changed their lives.{{cite web|author=Polly Williams |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/e-generation-summer-of-love-1171777.html |title=E Generation: Summer of love – Life & Style |work=The Independent |date=15 August 1998 |accessdate=15 May 2014}}

1. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Edit) – 3:36
2. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (12" Mix) – 7:10
3. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Sir Frederick Leighton Remix) – 7:49
4. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Beats) – 6:47

1. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Renegade Soundwave Mix) – 5:23
2. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Renegade Soundwave Dub) – 3:27

1. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (New 12" Mix) – 7:13
2. "Everything Starts with an 'E{{' "}} (Instrumental) – 5:18

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{{E-Zee Possee}}

{{MC Kinky}}

{{Boy George}}

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Category:1989 debut singles

Category:1990 singles

Category:1989 songs

Category:E-Zee Possee songs

Category:MC Kinky songs

Category:Songs about drugs

Category:Songs written by Simon Rogers